Moderating the Bunnies and Eggs of Easter

With Easter approaching, it’s hard to avoid the only reason secular culture seems to celebrate the day: A creepy Easter Bunny and egg hunts. How weird. How lame.

These are fun traditions for kiddos growing up in America but the real meaning of the extremely important reason for Easter is more easily suppressed than, say, Santa and the meaning of Christmas. I’d argue fewer people, especially children, understand the reason for Easter than the reason for Christmas (although I’m sure the latter is dismal as well).

Part of the reason for this is that today’s parents and adults are less reluctant to discuss the meaning of Christmas than Easter. Jesus being born is far less radical and outrageous sounding than Jesus resurrecting from the dead for us. Many millennial parents in today’s purely rationalistic, politically correct, and spiritually suppressed culture blush at the mention of such extravagant and miraculous claims. Better for them to fit in with today’s beige understanding of Christianity and not be seen as a “fundamentalist”. I mean, that’s kinda “extremest“, right?

This is why I am suggesting a firm effort by Catholic families to better moderate the Easter season’s connection to eating candy; finding eggs; and talking about a big, ugly, creepy, protestant bunny. It’s fun and festive to take part in these secular and cultural activities surrounding holidays–Santa Claus and his reindeer, trick-or-treating, and Easter baskets–but we must not let these largely empty secular customs suffocate the important reasons behind these holidays. If Christians continue trying to be polite and bashful, it will continue to happen. These are OUR holidays, don’t concede them! It’s exactly what the Enemy wants…just ask Screwtape.

The balance between secular celebration and truth/Christian understanding needs to be re-calibrated. Let’s start doing that now. Otherwise popular, anti-Christian culture will continue to devour truth, beauty, meaning, and Christ within our society until there’s hardly anything good left. ☩